Top Grossers of 2025: Bollywood's Big Winners and Box Office Stories From record-breaking blockbusters to surprise successes, a look at the Hindi films that ruled the box office and reshaped audience choices in 2025

In 2025, Bollywood proved that audiences still want to see movies that matter, see the spectacle that attracts an audience and have connections to emotional moments within the film. There were numerous changes to the cinema experience in 2025; the best films at the box office reminded us that the cinemas are still important, and Hindi films are at the centre of India's entertainment industry.

From epic historical films and espionage thrillers to romantic dramas with breakout stars, the hits of 2025 delivered a diverse range of films, and all of them had their own unique flavour, star-power, and audience love. Let's look at the films that dominated the box office in 2025 and see how they performed, who starred in them, and what made them so successful with Indian audiences, as well as those around the world.

1. Dhurandhar - ₹960 crore (Worldwide)

Stars: Ranveer Singh, Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, R. Madhavan

The winner of the year is Dhurandhar, the film didn't just win, it dominated. Released in theatres on December 5, 2025, the film has become the highest-grossing Hindi film of 2025, with a little over ₹960 crores grossing worldwide. Dhurandhar had a wonderful first-day box office earnings of ₹28 crores, and built momentum over Christmas and the holiday season. The film had a captivating story, with an ensemble cast of well-known actors and actresses, keeping audiences engaged when they watched the film. After the third week of screening, the movie was breaking box office records of previous successful Bollywood films.

However, Dhurandhar is not only a box-office success. It created a cultural phenomenon in Bollywood; it transcends demographics, making it a universal success, and has brought about a sense of nostalgia for classic thrillers combined with modern structure and stylistic elements.

2. Chhaava - ₹797 crore (Worldwide)

Stars: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Rashmika Mandanna

Released on February 14 (Valentine's Day), Chhaava demonstrated a range of emotions through the audience as well as reaching mass appeal. Despite being originally thought to be a typical festival-season release; The film will go down in Bollywood history as one of the highest-grossing films of all time, grossing over ₹800 crores worldwide.

Chhaava not only delivered high drama and emotional storytelling, but also created mass appeal due to the film's unexpectedly large box office success: nearly ₹800 cr worldwide!

3. Saiyaara - ₹579 crore (Worldwide)

Stars: Ahaan Panday, Aneet Padda

For many fans, the biggest surprise of the year has been Saiyaara, both in terms of its unique storyline, passionate romance, and heartwarming music that have resonated with audiences everywhere.

The film started its theatrical run with a very modest opening, but by the end of its second week, it was already one of the most talked-about films of the year. By mid-summer, Saiyaara had crossed the ₹500 cr mark at the worldwide box office, which was truly phenomenal for an "off-the-beaten-path" film with no established stars at its helm; it was simply because the filmmakers knew how to tell compelling stories that connect with an audience, and also through the power of social media, the passions for this film were growing longer than expected.

4. Mahavatar Narsimha - ₹326 crore (Worldwide)

Type: Animated mythological epic

As a complete shocker, Mahavatar Narsimha, an animated mythological film, was one of the top Hindi films in the world to be released in 2025 with a worldwide gross over ₹300 Crores, with a budget that didn't reflect its magnitude.

The film reminded audiences that a variety of different types of films, including animated films, and the storytelling of ancient mythology, are all capable of being popular with Indian audiences if they are marketed effectively and supported by credible reviews.

5. War 2 - ₹303-351 crore (Worldwide)

Stars: Hrithik Roshan, Jr. NTR, Kiara Advani

The reception of War 2, since its release has been moderate. However, as a result of the timing of its release on the Independence Day weekend, it was able to have an impressive amount of box office sales and cross the ₹300 Crores+ mark outside India. The scale and action sequences of the film, along with the pan India casting, allowed the film to be extremely successful with summer audiences, which led to its being one of the biggest films of the year.

Other Notable Performers

Beyond the top 5 movies, 2025 witnessed a variety of films being released and being successful at the box office, including:

Sitaare Zameen Par - It was an example of emotional storytelling combined with quality performances and grossed over ₹260 crore worldwide.

Raid 2 and Housefull 5 continued the trend of utilizing franchises and provided action and comedy lovers with two separate franchises. Both movies passed several important domestic and international box office milestones.

Films such as Sikandar, Thamma, and many others completed an overall successful year for Hindi film, offering a variety of types of films for a diverse array of audiences.

What 2025 Tells Us About Bollywood's Market

• We can identify a few themes regarding the box office: It completely runs on 'story over hype'.
• While the presence of big-name stars may help, films such as Saiyaara had the potential to resonate with emotions more so than on the traditional "opening day logic."
• Blockbusters such as Dhurandhar and Chhaava proved that the right combination of scale and production value can still attract audiences.
• Films with a strong audience connection generally outperformed films that relied mostly upon star power and marketing.

As the curtain falls on 2025, Bollywood's box office will not just be measured by revenue, but also by the stories that inspired us, the performances that we applauded, and the movies that made us remember why we enjoy going to see films in theatres. The top grossing films of 2025 are a testament to cinema's continued power in India, and its reach beyond its borders, with both expected films and films that took us by surprise.